Language & disability barriers
A person cannot participate fairly in a process they cannot access or understand
Justice can be denied when courts, agencies, police, detention facilities, or service providers fail to provide effective interpretation, accessible communication, physical access, or reasonable accommodations. Machine translation, family interpreters, inaccessible portals, or assumptions about disability can distort evidence and exclude participation.
What failure can look like
- No qualified interpreter, inaccurate interpretation, untranslated documents, or pressure to use a child or opposing person as interpreter
- Accommodation requests ignored, delayed, disclosed improperly, or treated as evidence against the requester
- Inaccessible buildings, hearings, websites, forms, recordings, transportation, or communication methods
Protect the record
Preserve accommodation and interpreter requests, responses, notices, recordings where lawful, translated and untranslated versions, access barriers, medical support where appropriate, missed events, and resulting harm. Contact the relevant access coordinator, disability-rights organization, language-access office, or qualified counsel.